HT550 Grand Depart - May 2022

[Mike]

Been a few scratches there. Wonder if the weather will hold for them

[Boab]

Can i hold onto 3rd???

Maybe if you don't waste any more time posting on here...!?!

[fatbikephil]

Can i hold onto 3rd???

Geroff this forum, your in a RACE!
keep on truckin' buddy, the best bits are still to come

[ScotRoutes]

Can i hold onto 3rd???

Not if you waste time on here!


Cracking effort btw!!!

[BobCatMax]

haha, i love that you're in here posting!

keep going Alex, you're doing amazingly well.

[whitestone]

Temperature has dropped a lot. Camping at Victoria Bridge and there’s a dusting of snow on the tops!

Saw another potential scratch last night riding back to Tyndrum

[Mike]

Seems to be a few folk haven't moved for awhile now unless spots are playing up.

[boxelder]

Wonder if Pete McNeil has a bike issue? Back to Fort Augustus.

[fatbikephil]

Just saw on Dotwatcher that Angus Young has knackered his spot so no more tracking. Looks like Huw is still going too but his spot has died. Alex used Suileg bothy for a couple of hours and is now in virtual second place depending on where Huw is.
Pete MacNeil is down as a scratch - he was meant to be making a film about the route so mebbes going to head up the wrong way to meet the leaders?

[ScotRoutes]

That does raise a question; I always thought that using a tracker was mandatory?

[fatbikephil]

Good question....
Not sure I've ever heard any 'ruling' on what happens if your tracker breaks or is lost and it's happened plenty of times - test of reasonableness? There seems to be a bit of a debate going on about their use over on that Bikepacking.com as it allows spectators to ID where riders are and secretly help them. Or something. A certain James Hayden was advocating not using them for true self supported racing...

[Lazarus]

They are still using it but not their fault its broken
They will have some form of GPS to prove they did the route when finished or I agree its should be a DNF
Bit rubbish for dot watching when the two fastest are somewhere unknown - first world problem from the comfort of my couch

[slarge]

I think your GPS trace can be used instead of a spot trace

[ScotRoutes]

Good question....
Not sure I've ever heard any 'ruling' on what happens if your tracker breaks or is lost and it's happened plenty of times - test of reasonableness? There seems to be a bit of a debate going on about their use over on that Bikepacking.com as it allows spectators to ID where riders are and secretly help them. Or something. A certain James Hayden was advocating not using them for true self supported racing...

Yeah, I know we've been through that moral maze on here before too but then the "rules" have been bent quite a lot in the not-so-distant past that I regard them more of what you might call guidelines

In previous years I know that some have regarded the lack of tracking in the TDR as gaining a competitive advantage.

[sean_iow]

SPOT trace wasn't your proof when I did it, the gaps between pings are too big.

Spot is mandatory as a safety measure. You have to submit a recorded track to Alan for verification you're a finisher.

[Lazarus]

how can it be seen as an advantage ?
not taking one saves weight??
Not sure a component fail during the race should mean disqualification [ assuming you can prove you did the route]

[ScotRoutes]

how can it be seen as an advantage ?
not taking one saves weight??
Not sure a component fail during the race should mean disqualification [ assuming you can prove you did the route]

The theory was that it can be an advantage if you are racing as your competitors have no idea where you are, where/whether you've stopped etc. That would have an affect on race strategies.

I don't know if having one is mandatory or not and , TBH, don't care that much. I'm just remembering some previous discussion on it. We've previously done the "will you take more risks knowing you have a tracker" discussion too.

[Lazarus]

The theory was...

Cheers as they cannot see yours then you do have an advantage - i get the argument

[In Reverse]

iirc Nelson Trees dropped his SPOT and did most of the ride without it but Alan still gave him a finish, so presumably it shouldn't affect final placings if Angus or Huw don't have them.

[fatbikephil]

I can't imagine Alan DQing somebody on that basis, as long as they have a good GPX track.
In other news Dotwatcher has a report that Alex is having brake pad issues. I hope he has spares... He's going like the clappers and looks like Huw and Angus are close up front.

[whitestone]

Alan verified my ride from my uploaded Strava files. I’d cocked up with my SPOT trace as I didn’t turn it on correctly.

Lack of SPOT granularity is why the bit of single track by the road in the Great Glen is no longer part of the route

[boxelder]

Alex on the Tollie path - pretty scrappy in places due to them replacing overhead lines. He may be riding the Torridon section in the dark, which is a shame.

[fatbikephil]

Alex on the Tollie path - pretty scrappy in places due to them replacing overhead lines. He may be riding the Torridon section in the dark, which is a shame.

The path is already shot, particularly the lower bit.... wonder if they will do it up post line replacement? It certainly needs some work...

[boxelder]

Alex on the Tollie path - pretty scrappy in places due to them replacing overhead lines. He may be riding the Torridon section in the dark, which is a shame.

The path is already shot, particularly the lower bit.... wonder if they will do it up post line replacement? It certainly needs some work...

They've made efforts to drive the caterpillar track vehicles off the trail, but anywhere they cross it - As you say, it's crappy before the very welcome picnic area.

[fatbikephil]

Alex on the Tollie path - pretty scrappy in places due to them replacing overhead lines. He may be riding the Torridon section in the dark, which is a shame.

The path is already shot, particularly the lower bit.... wonder if they will do it up post line replacement? It certainly needs some work...

They've made efforts to drive the caterpillar track vehicles off the trail, but anywhere they cross it - As you say, it's crappy before the very welcome picnic area.

I recall we were the only two who enjoyed it on HT2015